Saturday, 28 January 2017

Lidia D’Opera | Venice

After so much focus on Southeast and South Asia on the pages of The Travel Photographer blog, I think my readers and I are ready for a change of geography...and Venice and its famous carnival is probably one of the most jarring, but visually breathtaking- segue from one region of the world to another.The Carnival of Venice (known locally as Carnevale di Venezia) ends with the Christian celebration of Lent, forty days before Easter, on Mardi Gras, the day before Ash Wednesday. To make it simple, it will be held between the dates of February 11-28, 2017.

It is known for its elaborate costumery and masks. While it is uncertain as to the reason for the earliest mask wearing in Venice, it is said by some that covering the face in public was a unique Venetian response to one of the most rigid class hierarchies in European history back in the 13th century.

There are distinct types of masks with names such as Bauta, Colombina, The Plague Doctor, Moretta, Volto and Pantalone to name just a few. Venice during the Carnival is full of masked party-goers - posing and preening, dancing and enjoying themselves, reinventing a great tradition of the city.

Lidia D'Opera (what an evocative name!) describes herself as an enthusiastic street photographer and a traveler which, in my view, is another definition for a travel photographer. Her images of the Venice party-goers in their finery are some of the best I've seen. I much prefer the color images over the monochromes as they emphasize the wonderful costumery and masks.Her Exposure gallery also tells us how she managed to capture her images using the flashes from other photographers (I do that as well when I am in similar situations.)Apart from a more extensive website gallery of Carnival of Venice photographs than on her Exposure gallery, she has photographed in the streets of New York, India, Istanbul, Paris, Egypt, Hong Kong and her own Australia.

She has also quite a number of photo books on her website, some of which she published on Blurb and other publishing houses.

About The Travel Photographer

Based in New York City, I am a freelance photographer specializing in documenting endangered cultures
and traditional life ways of Asia, Latin America and Africa. My images, articles and photo features were published in various magazines, and my travel photographs were featured by some of the largest adventure travel companies in the United States and Great Britain, as well as in multinational corporations' art collections. My photographs have been acquired by an eclectic range of clients; from the Standard Chartered’ Bank's permanent art collection to Spike TV.

I also organize and lead photo expeditions and workshops for photographers who share my enthusiasm for unusual cultures,
uncommon locations and lesser known festivals. I'm a faculty member at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, and give workshops at the Travel Photographer Society (Kuala Lumpur).